Feels Like Home
by jacklavigne
Summary: Post Season Two, Piper centric, with POV's from other characters in every other chapter. Rated M for sexual scenes, violence and some very bad language.
1. Chapter 1

_AN: Here we go, another story to keep our minds busy until season three. This is my own version of how season three might go, but since most of us got it completely wrong for season two, I don't actually expect any of this shit to happen. Jenji has a way of making you expect something, and then giving you something completely unexpected and just blowing your mind. Anyway, this is a story, post season two, so there will be spoilers for those who havent seen it yet. STEER CLEAR OF THIS STORY, GUYS. _

_It's rated M for sexual scenes, some violence and a whole lot of super bad language. I don't intend for this story to be super dark, but there will be some dark themes mixed in with the drama and humour that our ladies are so well known for. Once again, I dont own any of the characters, nor do I profit from writing any of these stories. It's just for my own amusement, and hopefully for yours too. _

_This story will be mainly from Piper's POV, though, we will have other characters POV's thrown in there. Instead of just a basic Vauseman story, I want it to be more like the show, and have some of the other characters stories too, since they're all pretty interesting women. But, of course, Vauseman will be a top priority, cause I love Piper and Alex, not so much seperately (they are kind of horrible people, but thats what makes them kind of awesome together) but I love their relationship. _

_First chapter is a pretty short one, but they will get much longer with time, with the multiple POV's for each chapter. Enjoy!_

**Feels Like Home**

**Chapter One**

**Piper**

_"A dorm, B dorm, C dorm, we are on lock down, return to your dorms immediately."_

The calls over the PA and the whispers of the women in the Suburbs were mere background noise, as was everything when Alex Vause was involved. The drugs, the deals, the people she met, even prison, it was all just background; none of it mattered when your focus was on Alex. The letters felt heavy in her hands, but Piper felt no regret as she traced her thumb over the name written in the corner of the envelope. She wondered where Alex was now; if she was still in Queens, or if she'd already skipped town.

Part of Piper hoped that she had just left, that she had escaped the dangerous confines of her apartment and was on the next plane out of the country. Part of her hoped that Alex would indeed become the invisible woman, untraceable by even the most cunning and skilled trackers, unable to be found by the cops or by the cartel. She hoped that Alex would never discover the horrible thing she had done, because it was horrible, even if her heart had been in the right place.

She wanted Alex to be safe, even if it meant hauling her ass back into the prison system, where Piper could see her; see every rise and fall of her chest and know that she was still warm and breathing.

The other, more selfish part of her, the part that she had finally acknowledged after years of turning a blind eye towards it, just wanted Alex here with her. She didn't want Alex to disappear from her life, as Piper had once disappeared from hers on that fateful day in Paris. She knew that it would be better that way, for both of them, but she couldn't let go.

How could she let go when she'd only just finally figured out what she wanted?

She dropped her head back against the door of her metal desk, closing her eyes as she remembered their last goodbye in the visitation room. It had hurt, more than she could have possibly imagined, and it had been in that moment that she finally figured it all out. It was then, that she finally realized that Alex was what she wanted, what she had wanted all along.

_"You can't leave me," it hit her like a punch in the gut, bringing tears to her eyes as she realized that Alex was completely serious. She was planning to leave, to disappear from Piper's life, and just the thought of it made Piper's heart thump painfully in her chest. _

_"Piper, I'm in danger."_

_"But I don't have anyone left." It was a completely selfish statement, since Alex was seriously in danger of losing her life, but the words slipped out before she could think twice and it was the truth. _

_"I'm sorry, Piper. I'm sorry for all of it." Tears sprang to Alex's eyes, and the heartfelt words left their imprint in Piper's heart. Words that she'd been waiting for so long to hear, but god, not now, not like this. "I know that my track record is shit, but I really do love you."_

_"Yeah, well, I hate you." Childish, selfish bitch, Piper thought to herself, but she was seriously in danger of losing her infamous temper. She wanted to hear these words for so long, but not like this; never imagined that there could be an end to them, especially when they had always felt so inevitable. _

_"No, you don't," behind the tears, there was a familiar twinkle in Alex's all-knowing eyes, and it almost caused Piper to throw a tantrum. Because fuck her, fuck Alex, the woman who was claiming to have all of this love for her, and who was throwing it all away. Alex was leaving this time; she had no right to do this, to make Piper remember all these things that she'd left buried beneath her anger over their last meeting in Chicago. _

_Piper didn't want to love Alex right now, she wanted to hate her. She wanted to hate her for everything, but she couldn't._

_"No," she sighed softly, her voice tinged with regret. "No, I don't."_

_I love you too, the words were spoken as clearly in her eyes as if she had said them out loud, and Alex's lips twitched ever so slightly in acknowledgement. It was devastating, really, that this conversation was taking place in this setting, where the knowledge of their looming absence from each other's lives, possibly forever, hung over them. They sat there, staring at each other, neither wanting to say their final goodbye until Bell gave them the warning that visitation was almost over. _

_It was almost impossible to push herself out of her seat, to stand awkwardly across from Alex as she rose to her full height. They hadn't hugged when Piper first entered the visitation room, since Piper had still been pissed off, and now she wasn't sure what to expect. It was thankfully Alex who made the first move, taking an uncharacteristically hesitant step forward before opening her arms. Piper moved into them willingly, craving the contact, and feeling the first tear fall from her eyes when Alex's arms wrapped around her body tightly. She buried her face in her ex-lovers neck, inhaling her scent and clinging to her back with hands that knew every line of muscle on Alex's shoulder blades, intimately. _

_She felt lips against her hair, her temple and her jaw, and she closed her eyes at the contact, memorizing every touch and letting the rest of the world fade into the background. She felt the wetness against her cheek from Alex's tears, mingling with her own, and she gripped the dark haired woman impossibly tighter._

_"I'll miss you, kid," the words were spoken huskily into her ear. _

_"Don't go," she whispered in response, unable to say anything else. She felt Alex's grip on her tighten for a moment, before it relaxed and she begun to pull away._

_"I love you," A kiss to her forehead, a brush of a thumb against her cheek and then she was gone. _

_And Piper decided then, that she wasn't ready to say goodbye, not yet, probably never. _

She stared at the wall of her bunk, her thumb caressing the envelope absentmindedly as she lost herself in her thoughts. She barely acknowledged Nicky's presence when the wild haired woman ducked into her cube, sitting heavily on Red's bunk. "You're going to get a shot for being here."

"Yeah, maybe, if there were any CO's around to hand 'em out," Nicky agreed, picking at the edge of her bunk mate's blanket. "Look, Chapman, I just came around to say that I'm sorry for that shit I said earlier. I took my shit out on you and that wasn't fair."

"It's okay," Piper accepted the apology easily, since she knew that Nicky wasn't an apologetic person by nature, much like a certain bespectacled ex drug dealer. When these kinds of people were handing out apologies, they usually fucking meant them, and that wasn't something you should reject, no matter how much it hurt to accept it. "You're worried about Red, I get it."

"I know," the woman ran her fingers through her messy hair as she sighed. "But it wasn't right, and I shouldn't have said all that stuff, I didn't mean it. This place is fucked up and I shouldn't be giving you shit about whatever brightens your fucking day, y'know? If you're happy you get to see your ex lezzy lover, then good for you, man, I hope she wore something really fucking hot to visitation. Don't get me wrong, you're fucking crazy and this is some messed up masochistic shit that you two got going on, but I'm glad you guys have sorted out your shit."

Piper could only raise an eyebrow at the rambling speech of her friend, though the corner of her lips tilted into a somewhat sarcastic smile. "Thanks, Nicky."

"No problem, Blondie," Nicky smirked in response, before holding out her hand demandingly. "Now give me those fucking letters. I need something to take my mind off all this shit."

The blonde handed over the letters without a word of protest, watching as Nicky unfolded the first one, her brow furrowed in concentration as she read. She turned her gaze from her friend and glanced out the entrance of her cube, letting her eyes flit over the women whispering in their bunks. It wasn't hard to guess what they were whispering about, since news of the escaped inmate was all over the prison, though Piper found it hard to care. She hadn't let herself be dragged into the new drama since returning to Litchfield, and while Piper had heard enough about Inmate Vee from Red, she had never interacted with the woman before, and found it hard to be interested in her escape while her thoughts were still focused on Alex.

The woman hadn't bothered her, in fact, none of the women from the Ghetto had so much as spoken to her since her return, other than the situation in the mess hall, where she'd made a complete fool out of herself and had gotten hit with a piece of pie for her effort. That had been understandable though, since she'd gotten the mythical furlough, though it made the situation no less frustrating at the time. She'd been initially saddened by the lack of interaction with the B Dorm girls on her return, since they had been some of her friends before she'd been thrown into SHU, but the drama surrounding them had been enough to keep her away.

She'd had enough drama for a lifetime, and she was in no way interested in the little prison drug ring they had going.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by Nicky's amused chuckling, and returned the woman's smile as she glanced at her over the top of one of Alex's letters.

"Who knew that Vause was such a fucking suck up?" Nicky chortled as she waved around the letter she had been reading. "This is some pathetic shit right here, Chapman, puppy dog eyes and a pout in the form of a letter."

"She had a lot of shit to apologize for," Piper shrugged her shoulders. "We both did."

_More than you know, _Piper thought to herself briefly, as she remembered a phone call that had taken place only hours ago and the consequences it would have. If Nicky thought Alex's letters were pathetic, she hadn't seen anything yet. Depending on the outcome of that call, Piper had a lot of explaining to do.

And for some reason, that thought made her smile, because there was a chance that she would actually get to explain. And she wanted that chance now, more than anything.


	2. Chapter 2

**Feels Like Home**

**Chapter Two**

**Piper**

It had been two days, two long, mind numbingly boring, days since the prison had been put on lockdown. Piper hadn't thought it possible for Litchfield to become even more dull and dreary, but that was before she was sentenced to two full days in her cube, with brief breaks to the bathroom and the cafeteria for meals. Her days consisted of rereading Alex's letters, whispered conversation with Nichols and staring at the wall. The atmosphere was even more subdued and depressing than normal, with everyone worried about Red and Miss Rosa, and not to mention Morello.

God, if that hadn't been the most horrible and upsetting thing to witness, Piper wasn't sure what was. It had been heartbreaking to watch Lorna be practically ripped from a desperate looking Nicky's arms by two CO's. The crazy haired inmate had begged for them not to take her to the SHU, but it had been no use. Morello was being held accountable for the escape of an inmate, and with everything that had happened over the past few weeks, it was not being taken lightly. Lorna's sobs and soft, pleading voice had been stuck in Piper's brain for the rest of the night, and after last count, she'd taken the risk of sneaking into Nicky's cube to comfort her.

Which had truly been horrific, since seeing the blonde break down in sobs was akin to watching your mother cry when you're young, and feeling completely helpless. It was uncharacteristic of Nicky to let herself fall apart, especially in the presence of others, but after the past few weeks that she had suffered through, who could really blame her. Still, creeping into her bunk and hearing her muffled sobs had frozen Piper in her place for a brief moment, as she was almost overcome with a strange fear of seeing her friend in these circumstances. She wanted to go to her, to comfort her, but felt unsure of how to do so, which was the same feeling she remembered experiencing the first time she ever saw Alex cry, almost ten years ago. They were both such strong, strong women that it was truly something else to see them at their weakest, and Piper had been half horrified and half relieved when Nicky didn't turn her away, once she'd moved past her irrational fear and seated herself on the edge of her bed. She'd just sat there quietly, saying nothing, with her hand resting lightly on her friend's thigh, as the blonde cried with her body facing the stone wall.

No words had been spoken, other than a raspy thanks once the woman had stopped crying, and Piper had replied with a pat on the leg before sneaking back to her own cube.

But on the third morning, after the unexpected escape of the two inmates, Piper had been happily surprised when the CO's came through the Suburbs, telling everyone to get breakfast before heading off to their respective jobs. Word spread quickly through the cafeteria, as women bent their heads together and whispered the shocking news of Vee's dead body, which had been found on the side of the road, not far from the prison.

Though, it wasn't as shocking as the news of Miss Rosa, who had been shot down in a bank in New York, after she'd held the whole place hostage. The rumor was that she had died with a smile on her face, with a wad of cash balled up in her closed fist.

Piper glanced up when a tray dropped onto the table across from where she was seated, and couldn't have been more surprised if it had been the Devil seating himself across from her when she was met with Susanne's darting eyes and nervous face. With her spork raised half way to her mouth, Piper just stared at the woman as her dark eyes glanced from side to side, looking everywhere but at her. Biting back some choice words, since she wasn't quite over the pie incident yet, Piper just stared at the woman, until she finally met her gaze.

"You're not going to throw anything at me, are you?" Piper asked suspiciously, unable to help herself as she noticed the other woman playing with the lid on her yogurt.

"Nah, nope," Susanne shook her head from side to side, almost violently as she held her hands up in the universal sign for peace. "Just making amends, Dandelion."

"Dandelion?" Piper raised an eyebrow in surprise. "I thought I wasn't a dandelion anymore. I thought my petals were all wilted and dead."

"Maybe not, but you're not a weed, either."

Piper's other eyebrow raised at this, almost to her hair line as she stared at the crazy eyed woman who had begun to eat her meal. Since the woman hadn't proceeded to throw anything at her though, the blonde just shrugged her shoulders and returned to pushing her rubbery eggs around her tray. If that was Susanne's version of an apology, Piper decided to just take it without protest, since she owed her that much for keeping the blonde out of Max.

Though, she made sure to keep her eye on the yogurt on Susanne's tray, since she was in no mood to spend the next hour in the bathroom, getting that shit out of her hair.

/

**Nicky**

"Hey, Nichols?" A voice sounded just outside her cube, one which was annoyingly familiar. "A whole bunch of newbies just came in, and O'Neil said they'll be more tomorrow, 'cause shit got backed up with the lock down. You wanna start up our competition again?"

The crazy haired inmate turned to the woman standing at the entrance of her cube, staring at her incredulously with wide brown eyes. "Are you fucking kidding me, man?"

"What, afraid you're not up to the task?" Big Boo waggled her eyebrows as she fell into step beside Nicky, as they made their way to the cafeteria. "Shit, I don't mind, man, there are some hot bitches in this new group. More for me."

Nicky threw the overweight woman a disgusted look, partly over her comment and partly over the fact she hadn't forgiven her for her betrayal of Red. She'd let it go eventually, she knew, as Boo hadn't done it to purposely cause harm to her prison Mom, more out of her own self-interest. Plus, Nichols wasn't exactly the type to hold a grudge for too long, especially in prison, where the less people that were out for your skin, the better.

And while she wasn't scared of Boo in the slightest, she wasn't someone she wanted as an enemy either.

"Shit," Nicky murmured as she watched the new group of inmates being led down the hall by Bell, sticking out in their bright orange uniforms. It was the biggest group that they'd had for a while, almost fifteen women, and she knew that the rooms would be filled to the brim, especially if there was another group coming in tomorrow. "You weren't fucking kidding."

"I know, right?" Boo chortled as the group was led past them, looking at their surroundings with wide, nervous eyes. "Easy pickings."

"All right, all right!" Nicky threw her hands into the air with a disgusted sigh after several moments of silent deliberation, her eyes lingering on a small redhead that slipped around the corner and out of sight. "We'll talk to Chang, but we gotta make some serious rules this time, man! My wrists were so sore, I could hardly pick up a screwdriver last time, and I almost got a fucking shot."

"No shit, I almost passed out from fucking dehydration," Boo murmured as they walked into the cafeteria. "Pussy is fucking great, but it can't keep you going forever."

Nicky nodded her head in agreement as she stood in line, inclining her head when Daya passed her a tray. She turned to scan the cafeteria, looking for someone in particular and nodding her head determinedly as she saw her sitting at a table in the back. She stalked over to the table and dropped her tray next to Piper's, who looked up at her blankly as she settled on the stool beside her. "Chapman."

"Nicky," the blonde gave her one searching look, her blue eyes intent on her face before turning back to her meal. Nicky waited patiently for a comment from the blonde, involving the embarrassing incident last night, but when none was forthcoming, she breathed out an inaudible sigh of relief. Not being one to talk about her feelings, she was immensely relieved that Chapman didn't seem to want to discuss her little breakdown, and felt grateful that the blonde was smart enough not to bring it up. She knew that the woman was well known for sticking her foot in her mouth, but thankfully, since she had returned from Chicago, she had learnt to keep her mouth shut and her nose out of other people's business.

It was one of the reasons that she was usually left alone these days, that and the fact that most of the inmates were still wary of her, after Piper had used Doggett as her own personal punching bag on Christmas Eve. She had earned some pretty major badass points in the prison after that little incident, not to mention a few admirers who had been sick of the shit that constantly spewed from the bible basher's mouth.

It was then that Nicky noticed the other woman sitting across from them, and her eyebrows almost shot into her unkempt hair at the sight of Crazy Eyes. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Nicky," Piper admonished her quietly, nudging her with her elbow as Crazy Eyes looked up from her tray with wild eyes. "Be nice."

Nicky just grunted in response, glaring at the inmate whose hair almost rivaled hers in craziness, before turning to the blonde with mischievous eyes and a playful smirk. "Hey, Boo and I are starting up our competition again, you want in this time, Chapman? Saw a nice tall one in the group of newbies that just came in, figured she'd be right down your alley."

Piper turned her head to give Nicky one of her sardonic looks, before making one of her more memorable facial expression and shrugging her shoulders. "What are the stakes?"

"Ah, Blondie, I was hoping you'd say that." Nicky grinned as she shoveled a pile of eggs into her mouth, and almost spit them out just as promptly. "Oh, fuck, what is this shit?"

"I don't know, but the oatmeal still tastes like snot," Piper sighed with disgust as she pushed her tray away. "I've got some commissary in my cube; wanna split a breakfast bar on the way to work?"

"It's gotta be better than this shit," Nicky cringed as she picked at her withered apple. "They must have shut down the deliveries during lock down, hence the crappy food."

"Mmm," Piper murmured in agreement as she picked up her tray, and stood up from the table. "Bye, Susanne."

Nicky just watched as the other woman nodded her head in response, her eyes on the blonde's back as she tossed the contents of her tray. As she followed her cube neighbor from the cafeteria, she bumped her shoulder with a wicked grin. "Hey, you know, I reckon Crazy Eyes is a four on the score card, you might be some serious competition, Chapman."

"What? Shut up," Piper scoffed in response, before an intense frown furrowed her brow. "Seriously? She's a fucking four and I'm a lousy three? What the fuck?!"

**AN: Just to start, I'd like to thank everyone that has followed, favourited and reviewed this story, I'm overwhelmed by the response the first chapter received. Secondly, as I said, and as you've read above in this chapter, this story will start more with the humor side of things in the show, like the competition. The drama will build further on in the chapters, along with angst, and all the horrible things that kill us when we watch this show, but keep us coming back for more. The third and forth chapters are both already half written, and hopefully will be up sooner rather than later. Thanks for reading. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Feels Like Home**

**Chapter Three**

**Alex**

She's experiencing a strange sense of Deja vu, repeating a day for the second time, one that she'd really rather not. The car door slams with a sense of finality and the women seated around her jump in surprise, their bright orange uniforms matching the one that hung off her own body. Everything is the same, from the miserable feeling in the pit of her stomach, to the nervous faces of the women sharing the car. The only thing that's different this time around is the driver, who is definitely not Morello with her plain face and quiet demeanor.

The car rumbles to a start, and with her pillow pulled tight against her chest, Alex watches as Litchfield prison looms closer and closer with every turn of the wheels. There's an almost sense of relief blooming in her chest as she sees the drab looking building, seemingly impenetrable with its barbed wire fences and tightly locked gates far behind them. It's a familiar sight and it comes with a sense of safety, though it doesn't make her any less depressed to be back in this hell hole.

Her depression slowly simmers as the car is pulled to a stop, until it is a boiling hot anger that is burning holes in her stomach like acid, as she remembers why she's back here. Though, it's not so much a why, as it is a who.

Piper _fucking _Chapman.

The name invokes feelings of both tenderness and overwhelming anger, as it has for quite some years, and Alex doubts that will ever change. Sometimes, the tenderness overcomes the anger, particularly when the blonde is within her line of vision, but the resentment is always there, bubbling underneath the surface like a monster waiting to be released. It wasn't always there, at least not in the beginning, when she first met the blonde and they began their whirlwind romance. Back then it was all fiery passion and love, mixed in with doubt and a little bit of fear that was always harbored in the back of her mind, fear that the blonde would leave, which she had. It had been that very day when the anger surfaced, not so much because Piper left, since she couldn't really blame her for that, but because she left the day her beloved mother died.

And over the years, that anger and resentment had festered, because what a selfish, narcissistic bitch Piper was. Alex wasn't blind, at least in the metaphorical sense, she knew that she'd been fucking things up in their relationship, and that eventually it would all come crashing down, but she'd never guessed it would end the way it did. In her own way, she had put Piper on a pedestal, knowing that she had her flaws, but never truly believing that she would be capable of leaving Alex broken and bent behind her as she walked away, without one single backwards glance.

Piper was supposed to be different, they were supposed to be a team, but she'd ended up being just like all the other girls, only worse because Alex had truly believed that she was the one.

Alex always knew that she herself wasn't perfect; she knew she could be self-serving and manipulative, but that was her basic survival instincts. Her attitude and her ability to disconnect herself from situations were born from a childhood of bullying and a lifetime of disappointments, her father, for one example. It was a defensive mechanism, buried deep within the skin, and Alex was prepared to deal with the consequences of her ruthlessness, because it was what kept her alive. It was all about survival.

But as far as Alex was concerned, Piper was just a bitch.

But while she was angry, furious, with the blonde for what she had done, it was almost routine now, wasn't it? Alex thought to herself as the car door opened and she slipped out and onto the pavement. They had spent so long fucking each other over that it felt almost normal, and while it was completely fucked up, it was also comforting. Because they wouldn't keep fucking with each other if they didn't care anymore, right? If Piper didn't care, she wouldn't have gotten her friends to make a call to her parole officer, and had her sent back to prison.

If Piper didn't care, she would have just let her go.

These thoughts tampered her anger down some as she strode up to the prison door and pushed it open, but not enough that the door didn't slam against the wall with the force of her push. She let herself be led with the rest of the newbies through the familiar hallways of the prison, passing by inmates that she didn't recognize as they wandered through the halls. Despite still being partly lost in her thoughts, Alex still managed to notice the faint sense of melancholy that permeated the prison and made a mental note to ask Nicky what the fuck was going on once she saw her.

This thought lasted for barely a few seconds, when she noticed a familiar face wandering through the halls, and Alex's eyes widened in pure surprise.

"Hey, Stretch," Pennsyltucky said cheerfully as she walked passed their little group, running her fingers through her short hair. "Welcome back."

Alex was left gaping as the shorter woman disappeared around the corner, whistling a jaunty little tune. Her eyes continued to stare fixatedly at the space where the bible basher had been, before she violently shook her head and blinked the surprise from her eyes.

_What the fuck has happened to this place since I've been gone?_

/

**Piper**

"So, this is really happening?" Piper asked as she tore the skin from her orange and bit into the fruit, wiping the juice away from him chin. "I mean, the three of us are really just going to go around and see how many girls we can sleep with?"

"That's the basic idea, Blondie," Boo responded as she wrapped up a piece of corn and shoved it into her bra. "You getting cold feet?"

"No," Piper shrugged her shoulders confidently, though in truth, the idea of the game made her feel a little sick. What had she been thinking when she agreed to this?

She remembered Nicky's quiet sobs and her bloodshot brown eyes and sighed. Oh yeah, that. Anything to cheer up the one real friend she had left in this shithole, right?

She was just about to ask another question when she felt a hand drop on her shoulder, and looked up to see DeMarco's face at close range. She felt a pang in her stomach at the sadness in the older woman's eyes, who was surely mourning for Miss Rosa, after having shared a room with her for years.

"Hey, Chapman," she greeted the blonde with a small smile, offering a nod to the other woman at the table. "I just wanted to let you know that we're having a memorial for Rosa, down in the dorms later. We're going to kick the newbies out after dinner, if you wanted to drop by."

"Yes, yes, of course," Piper smiled sadly, reaching her hand up to lay it over the one that rested on her shoulder. "I'll be there."

"All right," DeMarco nodded, and let her eyes flit briefly over the other women at the table. "You're all welcome to come; they'll be some hooch going around and snacks. I'll see you later, Chapman." She left after one last pat on Piper shoulder, leaving the table in silence as they all reflected somberly over Miss Rosa.

"Okay, so what are the rules, Chang?" Nicky asked cheerfully a moment later, as she pushed her finished tray away and leant on the table, in an attempt to lift the morose mood that had fallen over table's occupants. Piper and Boo both copied her pose as Chang continued to draw up a number chart of the women in Litchfield.

"Okay, okay," the older woman murmured as she looked up. "Same rules as last time, but we have finish line this time, as requested. First person to reach fifty points wins."

"Fifty?" Piper asked in shock, her mouth gaping open.

"Fifty," Nicky repeated, equally as shocked, but for an entirely different reason. "Is that it?"

"That's it," Chang nodded her head, with a blank look on her face. "Different points for different women, ranging from one to ten. One for say... Lisa, easy girl, ten points for a guard."

"Only female guards, right?" Boo asked, her eyes flitting to Piper, who scrunched up her face in outrage.

"Both," Chang declared gleefully. "See how far you ladies will go."

"What's the winner get?" Piper asked curiously, though she doubted she'd even get a point in the competition. Not because she didn't think she had game, but more so because she wasn't interested in sleeping with half the prison.

"What, you mean you want more than copious amounts of pussy and our never ending respect if you win, Chapman?" Nicky scoffed in amusement as she rolled her eyes. "Greedy, much?"

"Fuck you," Piper responded, though without any real anger behind her words. "I'm risking getting a fucking STD; at the very least I should be getting something for it."

"Ten dollar added to your commissary and the REC room remote for a week," Chang supplied, though her words were barely heard over Nicky's bellow of surprise.

"Holy shit, Vause!" Nicky's words were both shocked and delighted, and they sent a shiver down Piper's spine that wasn't entirely unpleasant as her head swung around in surprise. "You're back!"

And there she was, Alex fucking Vause, standing out in her bright orange khaki's, which clashed with her raging green eyes. The dark haired woman forced a smile onto her ruby red lips, as she started to stride towards their table and Piper felt a pang of fear in the mouth of her stomach.

Because if Alex was angry, and by the way she was looking at her, angry at Piper, it meant that she knew. And that, that was fucking terrifying.

"Fuck, Chapman, your girlfriend's back," Nicky laughed as Alex slid into the stool across from them, in between Boo and Chang. "Wait, you're not going to back out of the competition now, are you?"

"Good to see you, Nichols," were the first words of Alex's mouth, deliciously low and raspy. And God, was she really sitting right there, within reaching distance, with that goddamn smirk on her face. Piper felt like she was in a dream, or maybe a nightmare, considering Alex looked close to picking up Nicky's tray and slamming it across Piper's face.

"Shit, man, it's good to see you too!" Nicky grinned as she briefly stood up to lean across the table and give Alex a hug. Alex's eyes met Piper's over her back, and the blonde practically shrank in her seat at the look in those green orbs.

Man, Alex was really fucking pissed at her.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Nicky asked as she sat back in her seat. "I thought you fucked over Blondie here and got a free ride out of this shit hole?"

Alex merely raised an eyebrow at this, her eyes briefly darting to Piper's, who slid impossibly lower on her stool, before turning her attention back to Nicky. "I fucked up with my parole."

Her response was short and her tone final, making it known that she didn't want further questioning over her sudden reappearance and Piper was immensely grateful. Nicky, ever observant, seemed to sense this and just shrugged her shoulders, before continuing her previous conversation with Chang.

"So, what's the deal between competitors?" There was a certain glint in Nicky's eye that made Piper cringe as she spoke. "I mean, 'cause Chapman's a three, right? That's easy points right there."

"Hey!" Piper growled in outrage as Nicky leant in and bumped her shoulder against hers with a mischievous grin.

"Everyone in game, including competitors," Chang nodded her agreement before picking up her chart and standing from the table. "Game starts now."

"What game?" Alex's brow furrowed deeply as Chang walked away, her green eyes flitting between Piper and Nicky. "Competitors? For what?"

"Points," Boo supplied readily, with a wicked grin.

"We're fucking chicks to see who can get the most points," Nicky added bluntly, a small smirk playing her lips. "Each girl has a certain amount of points, from one to ten, depending on how easy they are, and the first one to reach fifty wins. Too bad you got here a day late, Vause; you'd be some serious competition."

"Are you kidding me?" Alex's eyes were completely focused on Piper now, blazing with anger and something else. She didn't want to seem presumptuous, but Piper could almost swear that Alex was actually, dare she say it... jealous.

"This is going to be fun," Nicky chuckled evilly, rubbing her hands together.

/

**Alex**

When Alex finally saw her, sitting in the cafeteria, with her shoulder pressed against Nichols, she was even angrier than she expected she would be. It was like a white hot bolt of lightning hit her, sending spikes of anger jolting through her every nerve and bringing them to life. Her hands clenched unconsciously into fists, because _she _was why Alex was back here, wearing this hideous orange jumpsuit and being forced to eat the horrible food they were serving only meters away.

And when Nichols finally caught sight of her and called her name, Alex watched and waited as Piper turned around, and then she finally _knew. _

She'd obviously had her suspicions over the mysterious tip that her parole officer received, about her plans to skip town, since there had been only one person that she'd trusted in the world to tell that information to. Though, it hadn't so much been a matter of trust as to why she told the blonde, but more so a need to say goodbye to her, to see her face one last time before vanishing into thin air. But Piper's face was pure evidence of her betrayal, since her face was surprised but lacked the complete shock that her sudden appearance back in prison should have caused.

Not to mention the guilt that was shadowing her normally bright, almost hypnotizing blue eyes. _Bitch._

Her guilt only became more apparent once Alex joined them at their table, since the blonde could barely look her in the eye for more than a few seconds. And when the first opportunity exposed itself, Piper practically bolted from the table, with the excuse of wanting to grab something from her cube before returning to work. Alex wanted so badly to follow her, to confront her, but of course Piper was going somewhere she couldn't follow. But there would be time for that later, because if there was one thing Alex had now, it was a fuck load of time.

"Shit, Vause," Nicky chuckled with amusement as she stood up from the table, her hands shoved deep into her jacket pockets. "You're staring at Chapman's ass so hard, I can't tell if you wanna kick it or kiss it."

"I don't want anything to do with her ass," Alex responded coldly, ignoring her heart as it scoffed in disbelief. "Though, you two seem closer these days, Nichols, maybe it's you whose staring."

Alex was entirely unaware of where that comment came from, along with the bitterness that had permeated her voice, but she continued to hold Nicky's penetrating stare nonetheless. The wild haired inmate just continued to look at her, her brown eyes glinting with something Alex couldn't define, before a smirk twisted her lips and she shrugged.

"You've been gone for a long time, Vause," was all she said before inclining her head and following Piper from the cafeteria, leaving Alex alone with her dark, angry thoughts and a bitter taste in her mouth.


	4. Chapter 4

**Feels Like Home**

**Chapter Four**

**Piper**

She had escaped from the cafeteria at the first possible opening, as several women in the prison came over to welcome Alex back into Litchfield. She slipped out of her seat silently and offered it to Yoga Jones, who took it gratefully, and strode out of the room with Alex's green eyes burning into her back with every step she took. Lunch time was almost over and she was halfway across the yard, heading towards the electrical hut when she heard footsteps jogging up behind her.

With her heart in her throat, Piper kept her eyes forward as the footsteps got closer, and couldn't help but let out a giant sigh of relief when a familiar voice spoke.

"Holy shit, Chapman," Nicky panted as she fell into step beside the blonde, who had been practically hyperventilating with fear and anticipation only moments ago. "How fucking fast do you walk? Are you really that excited to get back to work, or are you just hiding from Vause?"

"I've almost finally fixed that fucking radio that Taystee handed in," Piper spoke as nonchalantly as possible, though the edge to her tone was impossible to miss. "She promised a King Cone to the person that fixes it, and I've got a craving for ice cream, okay?"

"Jeez, Blondie, no need to get all defensive," Nicky held her hands up in peace as she chuckled, amused at the blonde's reaction. "Shit, I don't fucking blame you, Vause looked pissed off. What the hell did you say to her at visitation?"

Piper was thankfully saved from having to answer when they pushed open the door to the electrical hut, and were immediately pointed to two boxes by a hung over looking Luschek.

"What's this, man?" Nicky asked as she opened the boxes, to reveal hundreds of light globes. She picked one up out of the box, gazing at it curiously before turning to look at the man in uniform.

"Caputo wants us to start fixing every fucking faulty thing in this place, starting with the light globes." Luschek sighed, wiping some sweat off his forehead as he leant back in his chair. "It's going to be a long couple of weeks for you, ladies, since you two are the only ones I've fucking got in here since they transferred everyone else to different jobs. We're doing light globes today, fixing wiring tomorrow, before installing new devices all through the prison for the next couple of weeks. Kitchen first, since they need a new oven, then we're installing a new television in the REC room, etc, etc."

"Jesus Christ, Chapman," Nicky sighed in frustration as she dropped the light bulb she was holding back into the box with an expression of disgust. "Did you really have to go and fuck shit up? We had a good thing going with Fig, I mean, this place was falling apart, but we got to sit on our asses all day."

"Shut up," Piper responded mildly, though she felt a blaze of pride in her chest at her part in this new reform of the prison. "Look, maybe we'll finally be able to replace the heaters in the Suburbs."

"Yeah, 'cause I really need all that humidity to fuck up my hair further," Nicky responded sarcastically, though there was a smile pulling at her lips as she attached a tool belt to her waist. "Come on, Chapman, get your shit on and grab the ladder. We'll start in the laundry room."

/

"For fuck sake, Chapman, hold it steady," Nicky hissed as she hurriedly reached down to balance herself on the ladder, while shooting a glare at the blonde situated on the ground. "Are you tweaking or something? Why are your fucking hands shaking?"

Piper blew a ragged breath out from between her lips, desperately attempting to ignore the dark haired woman that was seated on the other side of the room, watching them intensely. She shook her shaky hands out before once again gripping the ladder and keeping her eyes firmly on Nicky, who was replacing the light bulb in the REC room. "Sorry."

They had already completed changing the light bulbs in the laundry and the cafeteria, and were currently fixing the ones in the REC room before moving on to the dormitories. Work had been over for almost an hour, but since Caputo wanted the prison in tip top shape as soon as possible, Nicky and Piper were being forced to finish their jobs, no matter how long into the night it took. She wasn't really bothered by this, since they'd both been promised by Caputo that they would get the extra hours they worked back, once they finished off their tasks, and Piper looked forward to the few days off work once everything was done.

But honestly, right now, Piper wished they could just stop, so she could go take a shower and wash away the feeling of Alex's eyes staring at her so angrily.

The dark haired woman had entered the REC room barely a few minutes after Piper had set up the ladder, and had seated herself a few tables away. No words had been spoken, besides a terse hello which had been obviously directed at only Nicky, who in turn had scoffed with amusement at the tension filling the room. And now, Alex was just staring at her, but not in the way that Piper usually enjoyed. She was staring at the blonde in a way that made Piper's skin crawl with guilt, a look that said 'I know what you did and I'm going to kill you in your sleep tonight because of it, bitch.'

And the worst part was that Piper had to endure it, because she knew it was completely deserved. And yet, she wished that Alex would finally just call her out, wished that she would just say something because this silence was more torture than Piper thought she could bare.

And even worse was that Alex knew that too and she was using it to her advantage. Bitch.

_Oh, thank God, _Piper thought gratefully as Nicky finally began her climb back down the ladder, the old light bulb held carefully in her hand. Piper steadied her for the last few steps, since the ladder was ridiculously old and shaky, even with Piper's hold on it, and instantly felt the glare on her increase at the casual touch.

"Thanks, Chapman," Nicky briefly touched her on the arm before moving to place the old light bulb in the box, as Piper began to pack up the ladder. "Thank fuck, this shit is almost done. You're up next time though, Chapman, and maybe I can spend my time staring at _your _ass instead. It's only fair."

Piper only nodded at Nicky's comment as she adjusted her tool belt before picking up the ladder, while Nicky hefted the box of light globes in her arms. She cringed as she heard the grating noise of a chair sliding harshly across the polished floor, followed by a pair of heavy footsteps stomping away.

"Don't worry about her, man," Nicky chuckled at the expression on Piper's face as she carried her box of light globes to the door. "I think she was more pissed at me than you this time."

"What's the supposed to mean?" Piper asked with her brow furrowed as she followed Nicky from the room. The bushy haired woman glanced back over her shoulder at the blonde, giving her a sly smile and a wink.

"You'll find out soon enough, Blondie."

/

**Poussey**

With a slight bounce in her step, Poussey walked down the hallway to the library, where she knew that her best friend was currently hiding between the stacks. It had been Taystee's routine for the past two days, to bury herself in the books that she considered friends, the moment she was finished with work. She wanted to think that it was because her friend was missing her old job in the library, but she knew it wasn't the case. Taystee had always turned to reading when she in a state of emotional turmoil, and after the news they'd received yesterday morning, it was safe to say that her best friend was in a dark place.

It would be a complete and utter lie to say that Poussey wasn't relieved to hear of Vee's sudden departure from this world, but she also felt a pang of sadness when she heard the news. Not because of any sort of emotional attachment she felt towards the evil bitch, but more so because she knew that Taystee had seen her as a mother, no matter their differences and the devastation that the older woman had caused to her heart.

She pushed open the door to the library, and after a quick scan on the tables, immediately began searching between the stacks until she found Taystee sitting cross legged on the floor in the science section, with her face buried in a book.

"Yo, T," she kept her voice soft as she approached her, sliding down the shelving to sit beside her friend on the hard ground. "You won't believe the silent tension shit you just missed in the REC room, I thought those white bitches were gonna throw down."

"Chapman and her girl?" Taystee asked absently, her dark eyes still scanning the page of her book.

"Yeah, man, those two be crazy," Poussey chuckled as she bent her head to read the title of the book, _Alice in Wonderland. _"But I think Blondie's fucking Nichols now or some shit, got the one with glasses all pissed off."

"_We're all mad here,_" Taystee recited from her book, closing it carefully and caressing the cover with gentle fingers before turning to give Poussey a look. "But white bitches be crazy, for sure."

"You said it, T," Poussey grinned, before she composed her face into a more serious, sympathetic expression. "How you doing?"

Taystee's face turned thoughtful as she tilted her head to gaze down at the cover of her book, as if she really had to think about how she felt, which wasn't surprising, considering the amount of shit the girl had been put through recently. Poussey stayed silent as Taystee processed her thoughts, patiently waiting for her friend to open up, and hoping that the rift that had driven them apart was repaired enough for Taystee to do so. Her relief was profound when Taystee finally dropped her head back against the stacks and turned her head to look at Poussey with dark, confused eyes.

"I don't know," Taystee answered honestly, her voice barely above a whisper and so filled with hurt and confusion that it made the smaller woman's heart ache. "I mean, I was so pissed at her, y'know? But I didn't want her dead, P."

"Yeah, I know," and Poussey did know, she understood the turmoil in her friend's mind at Vee's death, even if she didn't feel the same. She wouldn't lie and say that she hadn't wished it, because she had, drunk and nauseous on this very floor, beaten and broken on cool bathroom tiles. She had wanted Vee _gone, _had even imagined doing the deed herself a thousand times.

But she had never, ever, wished this kind of pain on her best friend, who despite everything that had happened, would always be her best friend. They were family after all, Poussey thought as she reached out and took Taystee's hand in her own, content to just sit there with her friend in silence as she lost herself in her thoughts. And if the past few months had proved anything to the young woman, it's that that would never, ever change.


	5. Chapter 5

**Feels Like Home**

**Chapter Five**

**Piper**

It was long after dinner when Piper finally forced herself to walk to the dorms on tired feet, after a long day of climbing up and down ladders to replace the entire prison's light bulbs. She had left Nicky at the door to the electrical shack, as she returned the ladder with a promise to meet Piper in Miss Rosa's room once the blonde grabbed some snacks from her cube. Now with her arms full of crisps and multiple chocolate bars shoved into her pockets, Piper was wondering through the hallways towards the place where she had slept on her first few nights in prison.

The room was packed tight with people when she got there, with women from all over the prison sitting on every available surface in the already tiny room. It was borderline claustrophobic, but Piper pushed determinedly through the crowds of women when DeMarco waved her in with a small smile. The setting was reminiscent of Tricia's farewell, though with a different array of inmates and a lot more hooch, if the bottles in everyone's hands were anything to go by. Piper glanced over at Miss Rosa's old bunk as she passed her gifts to DeMarco, the one spot in the room which was empty, save a bottle of hooch and some flowers. She felt a pang in her heart as she remembered walking into this room for the first time, placing her things on the bunk above Miss Rosa's and falling asleep to the sound of her heavy, sometimes strained breathing.

"Thanks, Chapman," DeMarco pulled her from her thoughts as she gave the blonde a smile and a pat on the thigh, while she began handing out the crisps and the chocolate bars to the women seated throughout the room. Piper mere nodded in response before turning around to find a spot to sit and coming up completely empty.

Save for one empty space, on the bunk in the opposite corner of the room, where a box with the name _Vause _was written on the side in familiar handwriting, right behind the woman herself.

_Fuck. _

Piper considered sitting on the floor, right where she stood, for all of about five seconds, until more women began to push into the room and the blonde sighed in defeat. With slow, hesitant steps, she crossed the room to where the dark haired woman was sitting, glaring at her intensely. The blonde sat down almost gingerly on the edge of the bunk, taking up as little space as possible and turned her head away from the women who was still just _staring _at her.

And if the moment couldn't get any more awkward, Nicky chose that exact moment to make her entrance, giving Piper a giant grin when she noticed her and her seating arrangements. Piper cringed internally at the glint in the blonde's eye, since she had finally figured out what the crazy haired inmate was trying to achieve, which seemed to be pissing off Alex as much as possible.

Piper choked on a gasp when she suddenly felt a hand grasp on to the waistband on her khaki pants, pulling her further back onto the bunk and closer to the dark haired woman that was sitting beside her, with her back pressed up against the wall and her long legs splayed out before her.

"What the f-" Piper turned to face Alex with wide eyes, to find those familiar green eyes staring back at her from close range, still blazing with the anger they had held all day. "Uh."

"What the fuck are you doing?" Alex spoke directly to her for the first time since her return to Litchfield, her voice laced with anger and frustration. "Since when were ex drug addicts your type, Piper?"

"Uh," Piper stuttered once again, grateful that their conversation was quiet enough not to be heard over the general conversation in the room and therefore, no one could hear her making a fool of herself. "Um."

"Is that seriously all you have to say to me?" Alex eyes were blazing furiously and suddenly, she was much too close, just way _too_ _much _for Piper right now. The blonde was exhausted and still in some emotional turmoil over Alex's sudden reappearance in her life to be dealing with this right now. And this wasn't how this was supposed to go at all, not here in this room with all these people, just not _right now. _

And so with hands that had been shaking all day, Piper pushed herself away from Alex and away from the cramped bunk and the overcrowded room. She pushed past Nicky who had lingered in the doorway, slipping out of reach of the hand that reached out to touch her arm and started making her way back to her cube.

And would have gotten there just fine, had it not been for the footsteps that followed her, or the hand that reached out and grabbed her shoulder.

"Hey," Alex growled as she spun her around with almost enough force to send the blonde reeling, had it not been for the steadying hands that grabbed her at the last moment. "You don't just get to walk away from me this time, Piper."

"Alex, I can't-"

"Fuck you, you can't," the dark haired woman hissed furiously, her green eyes burning. "I could be in fucking Cambodia right now, doing X on the beach with three strangers in drag, but I'm _here_, because of _you. _I don't care if you're fucking half the women in here or if you have a new prison wife; you don't get to walk away from me."

"What do you want me to say, Alex?" Piper sighed in resignation, more relieved than anything that this was finally happening, since one day was more than enough to be subjected to Alex's angry silence and hateful stares. "Do you want me to tell you that it was me? That I'm the one who turned you in and fucked you over _again_? Sure, it was me, but you already knew that, didn't you."

"I almost shot my fucking parole officer because of that call," Alex growled. "And then I get to return to this fucking shithole, only to find that you're sleeping with Nichols? Really, Piper?"

"So what if I am? You were planning to just _leave, _why do you care who I fuck?" Piper responded, knowing deep down that she deserved all this, but too riled up to care because, yes, she deserved Alex's anger and hatred for bringing her back here, but what right did Alex have over who she slept with?

"Oh, so it's like that, is it? What about Larry, have we forgotten him so soon?" Alex asked sarcastically, with a hint of bitterness in her tone and Piper couldn't help but laugh. God, she'd forgotten just how much Alex had missed since she had been gone.

"Larry's too busy fucking Polly to give two shits about who I choose to sleep with," Piper chuckled, though without any real amusement. "And what does that have to do with anything, anyway? Wait, you pulled a fucking _gun_ on your parole officer?" Piper paused for a moment to stare at Alex with wide, disbelieving eyes as this new information settled in her overactive brain. "So, really, it's not even because of me that you're in here."

"Of course you would come to that conclusion, you fucking narcissist." Alex scoffed, throwing her hands up into the air before directing a glare in Piper's direction. "Let's just forget the fact that he showed up because of the little anonymous tip that _you_ gave him."

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe I didn't do this because I think that the world revolves around me?" Piper finally spoke, her voice sounding almost exhausted as she felt. She was tired, so fucking tired and honestly just resigned to her fate, but she refused to take the blame for everything. She was sick of always being the bad guy. "That maybe I did this because for once, I didn't want to burn everything that was important to me, but because maybe, just maybe, I wanted you to be safe? Did it ever occur to you that I give a fuck about whether you live or die, or if you have to spend the rest of your life living in a hole because no one could protect you? Did you ever think that maybe I would want to protect you, Alex? Even if it meant you having to return to this hell hole, where I could see you every day and know that you're still breathing? Did you ever think about any of that, or were you just so wrapped up in your anger and hatred that you didn't even care to wonder?"

She stared into Alex's green eyes, taking in her shocked, disbelieving expression and simply sighed before turning on her heel and making her way back to her cube.

"That's what I thought."

/

**Alex**

She wants to be angry, she wants to rage and yell and hit things- hit_ Piper_, but she doesn't. She plays it cool, calm and collected, keeps her emotions close to her chest, because she doesn't have to yell for Piper to know that she's angry. Oh, Piper knows, the blonde can feel her stare burning into her back, Alex can tell by the way her shoulder blades shift uncomfortably every time she's within Alex's line of vision. She's been following the younger woman around all day, never saying a word, just following her like a reminder of Piper's betrayal as the blonde continues to change light bulbs with Nichols.

And fuck, if Alex doesn't want to hit Nichols every time she casually touches the blonde, as if it's the most normal thing in the world, which it could be now. Nicky was right, Alex has been gone for a long time and things change. But it doesn't make it any easier when Piper helps Nicky down from the ladder with a hand on her waist and the crazy haired inmate offers her thanks with a gentle caress to the blonde's arm. Alex sees red and her chair slides viciously across the floor as she storms out of the REC room, away from these casual gestures that could mean so much more than Alex ever wants to know.

She wants to be so fucking angry about the fact that Piper threw her in here, but what really pisses her off is the thought that maybe Piper's moved on to someone else. Larry, Alex could deal with, since Piper was fucking _engaged _to him before she ever came to prison, but Nicky? Nicky who's had her hands in every girl in this prisons pants, not to mention Alex's? No, fuck that.

So when Piper comes in to the dorms later and the only seat left is besides Alex, the dark haired woman doesn't tell her to fuck off when she sits on the very edge of the bed, even though she almost wants to. Instead, in a moment of jealous anger, she pulls the woman even closer when Nicky's fuzzy head pops into the room, complete with amused smirk and sparkling brown eyes.

But Piper won't talk to her, which is infuriating and worse, she gets up and fucking leaves when Alex questions her, as if she has a right to walk away from Alex anymore.

And then everything just _explodes_ and Alex is left in the middle of the corridor, wondering what the fuck just happened. The argument had started exactly as the dark haired woman expected and she not so subtly tries to get an answer from Piper over her relationship with Nicky and fails, which just makes her angrier. And then Piper says all those things, about wanting to keep Alex safe and alive and the dark haired woman is just dumbstruck when the blonde walks away, because Piper is completely right in her assumption of Alex.

Their relationship had always been a continuous game of fucking each other over, so of course she'd never considered the possibility that Piper might be trying to save her instead of breaking her for once. The thought leaves her breathless and it kind of makes sense, even if Piper is swirling with Nichols these days; it was obvious in their short visitation session that Piper still cared. The blonde had been genuinely worried at Alex's predicament and had even begged for the dark haired woman not to leave, despite the fact that Alex had fucked her over so badly in Chicago. Piper had never been one for long lasting grudges after all, especially where Alex was concerned; that had been a trait found more commonly in the dark haired woman's personality. Piper had always been warm and honest, kind and caring and despite their differences, she had never wanted Alex dead, the dark haired woman knew. So, Piper's words were completely plausible and it left Alex aching, fucking _wrecked_ because what the fuck was she supposed to do now? Where the fuck does she go from here? Where do they go from here?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a low, amused whistle and Alex turned her head to glare at Nichols as she walked past, towards the Suburbs.

"Dyke drama, you gotta love it." The crazy haired inmate chuckled, playfully bumping Alex's shoulder as she passed before continuing on down the hallway, leaving Alex staring after her, deep in thought.


	6. Chapter 6

_AN: Hey guys, this is just a very short, filler chapter before we move on to bigger and better things. The drama is about to start up and while my life is pretty busy right now, hopefully I'll be able to find more time to update this story. I just want to thank everyone for the amazing feedback, you guys are the best and I appreciate every comment so much. Thank you. _

**Feels Like Home**

**Chapter Six**

It was Saturday morning and for the first time in months, Piper found herself sleeping long past dawn. With the sun's rays shining in her eyes, she pushed herself groggily out of bed and cursed herself for fucking up her routine, since she'd now have to wait in line for a shower. She grabbed her toiletries and a towel, slipped into her shower shoes and padded towards the bathroom, grimacing at the line that was almost out the door.

"For fuck sake," She grumbled as she slipped into the line behind Nicky, who was bobbing her head to the music that was playing through her head phones. She gave Piper a grin upon seeing her and pulled one of the buds from her ear.

"Hey, Chapman, what's going on?" The crazy haired inmate cocked her head as she studied the blonde, noticing her glassy stare and disheveled hair. "It's not like you to be around here after five am."

"I slept in," Piper glared at Nicky as the other woman smirked, her big brown eyes sparkling with delight.

"Will wonders never cease," she teased, before throwing Piper an arrogant look. "Well, I _was _in here at five am this morning, though I wasn't showering. I finally managed to wrap that cute little redhead around my fingers, literally."

"You're disgusting," Piper cringed as Nicky laughed, her brown eyes twinkling with amusement. "How many points?"

"Two," Nicky said smugly. "That makes it seven points for me so far and you're still on zero, Chapman. Seriously, you need to get over your shit with Vause and get your game face on. You don't want to lose to Boo, do ya?"

"It's been one day, how do you already have seven points?" Piper asked incredulously, before holding up her hand and shaking her head. "You know what; I don't even want to know. Plus, it's not that easy, Nicky."

"Sure it is," the woman insisted. "You just find a girl, smile that pretty smile of yours, and say, 'hey, baby, wanna fuck?'"

"Oh, right, 'cause that's would totally work," Piper scoffed sarcastically, rolling her bright blue eyes.

"You don't know until you try, Chapman."

"Fine, watch," Piper turned to the woman that had walked up to stand in line beside her a few moments ago, one of the young inmates from the last group to come in. She gave her, her most winning smile, and repeated the words that Nicky had spoken moments ago. "Hey, baby, wanna fuck?"

"Seriously?" Piper watched with horror as the girl's eyes brightened with definite interest and heard Nicky's bark of laughter from behind her. "Like, right now?"

_Well, that backfired, _Piper thought to herself as she stuttered and stumbled over a response, fighting the blush that was darkening her lightly tanned cheeks. She attempted to ignore Nicky's chortling behind her as she stared at the young, dark haired woman dumbly and it was only then that she noticed another dark haired woman standing in line a few people down.

Except, this dark haired woman was about three inches taller and had green eyes that were blazing angrily as she stared back at Piper.

"Uh," Piper stuttered as she turned her attention back to the sparkling eyed inmate in front of her and cringed internally. "You know, it's a bit early right now and I'm still waking up, but maybe later?"

"Sure," the young woman smiled at her shyly and Piper attempted a smile in return, which turned out to be more of a grimace, before spinning on her heel to find Nicky, red faced and gasping with laughter. She glowered at her friend as she wheezed, with her hands on her knees and tears leaking from the corners of her eyes.

"Fuck, Chapman," the crazy haired inmate panted as she stumbled towards a newly free shower stall. "I swear to God, you just brighten my days, you know that."

"Shut up," Piper grumbled as she leant against the wall and waited for another shower to open up; attempting to ignore the green eyes she could feel burning into her back. It had been less than twenty four hours since her encounter with her dark haired ex and Piper still wasn't ready to face her yet. Their conversation had been brief, but it was more than enough to keep Piper away for as long as she could manage it, unable to face those angry, cold green eyes that flickered with hurt and betrayal. Thankfully, a shower opened up moments later and Piper quickly scrambled into it, closing the ripped curtain behind her with a sigh of relief. She pulled off her clothes and hung them over the side of the shower before stepping beneath the luke warm water, wishing for the hundredth time that it was hot.

Following the rule of showering in under ten minutes or getting punched in the tit; Piper quickly washed her hair and her body before wrapping her thin towel around herself. She pulled open the shower curtain and almost stumbled back inside when she found Alex standing directly outside the stall, waiting with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Jesus fuck," the blonde cursed, still tired and irritated over the coolness of her shower and more than a tad perturbed by Alex's close proximity. "It's called personal space, Alex."

"Didn't realize you minded," Alex shot back easily, as if the day before had never happened. A small smirk even graced her lips and it almost pissed Piper off, because what the fuck? Hadn't Alex been an inch away from ripping out her throat yesterday with her perfect stupid hands? And yet now here she was, attempting their normally effortless banter which felt awkward and strange to Piper after the last few days and all the shit that lingered between them.

"Oh, we're back to this now, are we?" Piper asked with a skeptically raised eyebrow. "I thought that you hated me."

"It's the weekend; I don't hold grudges on the weekend."

Piper narrowed her eyes, ready to retort but was interrupted by Nicky sticking her head around the corner, looking between the two women with a mischievous look in her brown eyes. "Hey, not lesbian! Just 'cause everyone else is slacking off today, doesn't mean we are. Come on, the prison system is giving us free shocks, you don't want to miss that, do ya?"

Piper sighed, noticing Alex's intense glare out of the corner of her eye as the dark haired woman muttered under her breath. "Cuntblock."

Piper gave the older woman a dull look before slipping past her and following Nicky from the bathroom, half annoyed and half amused by the extra skip in her step. "You're enjoying this way too much."

"I have no idea what you're talkin' about, Chapman," Nicky replied innocently, though the devious smirk on her lips betrayed her thoughts. Piper shook her head, unable to stop her stare from sparing a glance over her shoulder, but Alex had already slipped into the shower stall and out of sight.

/

"Fucking fuck!" Piper hissed, pulling her hand away from the electrical box and shaking her hand out in an attempt to abate the lingering tingling in her fingers. "I fucking hate this place! I thought you said that you turned off the power?"

"My bad," Nicky chuckled. "I thought I did, but one of the newbies distracted me. There's something sexy about those fucking orange khaki's man."

"You're going to be the death of me," Piper sighed as she stuck her index finger into her mouth, waiting as Nicky proceeded to switch off the power before sticking her hand back into the electrical box. With skilled fingers, she fiddled with the wiring, replacing the tattered cords as Nicky watched her with a critical eye. She was just screwing the metal cover back into place when they were interrupted by a group of new inmates rounding the corner, led by Brook Soso.

"Ladies, this is Nichols and Chapman," the young inmate seemed to be playing the role of tour guide as she pointed out the two older women to the other newbies. "They work in electrical."

Piper sighed when she noticed the girl from the shower line in the small group, smiling at her shyly as Nicky made intense eye contact with a small, attractive red head. She smiled back at the young girl halfheartedly, earning a sharp look from Soso who immediately dragged the girl away from them, along with the rest of the group.

"You need to be careful, Sarah," Piper heard Brook whispering to the young inmate as they walked away. "Chapman's a stone cold lesbian and she tried to sell me for a blanket. Her aura is all dark and twisty and you don't want to get mixed up in that, trust me."

Piper rolled her eyes as the group of young women disappeared around the corner, only to be replaced by a tall, raven haired woman with her face stuck in a book. Piper watched as Alex strolled past them, barely even sparing them a glance as she continued down the hallway, completely immersed in the words on the page in front her. Piper couldn't help but stare as she walked away, her blue eyes fixed firmly on the older woman's long legs and firm ass, noticeable even in the slightly baggy khakis.

And while she didn't agree with Nicky on much, she had to agree that those orange khaki's really were something else.


End file.
